List of presidents of Michigan State University

President of Michigan State University
Incumbent Kevin Guskiewicz since 2024
Appointer	Michigan State University Board of Trustees
Formation	1857
First holder	Joseph R. Williams
Website	Office of the President

The following persons had led Michigan State University or one of its predecessors since 1857: ^{[1] [2] [3]}

Presidents

Michigan State University

No.	Image	President	Start date	End date	Ref.
1		Joseph R. Williams	1857	1859	[4]
2		Lewis R. Fiske	1859	1862
3		Theophilus C. Abbot	1862	1885
4		Edwin Willits	1885	1889
5		Oscar Clute	1889	1893
6		Lewis G. Gorton	1893	1895
7		Jonathan L. Snyder	1896	1915
8		Frank S. Kedzie	1915	1921
9		David Friday	1922	1923
10		Kenyon L. Butterfield	1924	1928
11		Robert S. Shaw	1928	1941
12		John A. Hannah	1941	1969
13		Walter Adams	1969	1970
14		Clifton R. Wharton, Jr.	1970	1978
15		Edgar L. Harden	1978	1979
16		M. Cecil Mackey	1979	1985
17		John A. DiBiaggio	July 1, 1985	August 31, 1992	[5] [6] [7]
18		Gordon Guyer	September 1, 1992	September 30, 1993	interim [8] [9] [10] [11]
19		M. Peter McPherson	October 1, 1993	December 31, 2004	[12] [13] [14] [15]
20		Lou Anna K. Simon	January 1, 2005	January 26, 2018	[16] [17] [18]
–		Bill Beekman	January 26, 2018	February 4, 2018	acting [19]
–		John Engler	February 5, 2018	January 17, 2019	interim [20] [21]
–		Satish Udpa	January 17, 2019	July 31, 2019	acting [22]
21		Samuel L. Stanley	August 1, 2019	November 4, 2022	[23] [24] [25]
–		Teresa Woodruff	November 5, 2022	March 3, 2024	interim [26]
22		Kevin Guskiewicz	March 4, 2024		[27] [28]

References

1. "Michigan State University Office of the President". Michigan State University . Retrieved July 30, 2024.
2. "Michigan State University History". Michigan State University . Retrieved July 30, 2024.
3. "Timeline". Michigan State University.
4. "Joseph R. Williams". 2014 Michigan State University Board of Trustees. Retrieved June 13, 2014.
5. Harsha, Jennifer (November 16, 1984). "DiBiaggio given big welcome" . Lansing State Journal . p. 1. DiBiaggio's eager acceptance of the MSU board's offer to become chief executive July 1 left little doubt of his positive regard for the university.
6. Harsha, Jennifer (June 16, 1985). "DiBiaggio backs tougher academic rules for athletes" . Lansing State Journal . p. 4. DiBiaggio, who becomes Michigan State University president July 1, is wrapping up his affairs as president of the University of Connecticut.
7. Miner, Betsy (May 20, 1992). "DiBiaggio leaving MSU: After 7 years here, president taking over at Tufts University" . Lansing State Journal . p. 1. DiBiaggio, Michigan State University's president since 1985, announced Tuesday that he would become Tufts University's 11th president. DiBiaggio is expected to start Sept. 1 at Tufts.
8. Miles, Gary (August 13, 1992). "MSU's interim president already busy" . Lansing State Journal . p. 15. Gordon Guyer doesn't yet have the full title, but he's already getting the responsibilities. Here's a look at the move ment at the top at Michigan State University: John DiBiaggio, president since 1985, leaves for the presidency of Tufts University on Aug. 31. David Scott, provost since 1986, resigns to his tenured professorship on Aug. 31. President-designate Gordon Guyer, former vice president of governmental affairs, assumes the presidency on Sept. 1. The Michigan State president-designate, who becomes president on Sept. 1, said he'll move quickly to name an acting successor to Provost David Scott.
9. Miles, Gary (August 31, 1992). "MSU gets new leader, new legacy: New president talks about goals, plans for year ahead" . Lansing State Journal . p. 7. Gordon Guyer becomes the 18th president of Michigan State University Tuesday, succeeding John DiBiaggio. There are instant priorities: He hopes to name a new provost, or chief academic officer, today or Tuesday.
10. Miles, Gary (April 8, 1993). "Presidential search goes on despite leak" . Lansing State Journal . p. 1. MSU is searching for a successor to interim President Gordon Guyer, who succeeded John DiBiaggio on Sept. 1. MSU hopes to have a new president by Sept. 1.
11. Miles, Gary (June 24, 1993). "MSU search behind schedule" . Lansing State Journal . p. 9. MSU may not have a new president in place by Sept. 1 as hoped, Trustee Joel Ferguson said Wednesday... Guyer replaced former MSU president John DiBiaggio, who resigned effective last Sept. 1 to take the presidency of Tufts University in suburban Boston... The date was imposed, in part, by President Gordon Guyer's request to step down after one year. Though Guyer's term would expire on Sept 1, he has said he'll stay on if trustees are making significant progress toward picking a successor.
12. "M. Peter McPherson: Banker known for human content of policies" . Lansing State Journal . August 18, 1993. p. 8.
13. Scotta, Tony (October 1, 1993). "Search for top academic officer a priority for MSU's McPherson" . Lansing State Journal . p. 11. As M. Peter McPherson starts his first day as MSU president today, so does a process to fill the school's chief academic officer position.
14. Terlep, Sharon (May 8, 2004). "McPherson to leave MSU: President announces he will end 11-year tenure on Jan. 1" . Lansing State Journal . p. 1.
15. "Amid difficult transition, MSU needs incumbent trustees" . Lansing State Journal . October 21, 2004. p. 12. President Peter McPherson will step down in December, after serving 10 years at the helm. The transition should be fairly smooth longtime Provost Lou Anna Simon takes over Jan.
16. Terlep, Sharon (June 19, 2004). "Provost Simon to lead MSU: Trustees fill spot without search" . Lansing State Journal . p. 1.
17. Jesse, David (January 25, 2018). "Lou Anna Simon's resignation from MSU comes with lifetime of perks". Detroit Free Press .
18. "Lou Anna K. Simon". MSU.
19. "Board of Trustees accepts Simon's resignation; appoints Beekman as acting president". MSU. January 26, 2018.
20. "MSU Trustees Name Former Michigan Governor John Engler Interim President". MSU. January 31, 2018.
21. "Engler resigns as interim president; Board of Trustees appoints Satish Udpa as acting president". MSU. January 17, 2019.
22. Riddick, Tierra (February 8, 2019). "Michigan State University appoints third president in less than a year". MSU.
23. "Stanley takes office as 21st MSU president". MSU. August 1, 2019.
24. Birkle, Andrew (October 13, 2022). "Michigan State President Samuel Stanley announces resignation". WLNS-TV .
25. Foster, Wells (November 2, 2022). "MSU president Stanley to leave office early". WLNS-TV .
26. "MSU trustees name Teresa K. Woodruff interim president". MSU. October 31, 2022.
27. "Office of the President". Michigan State University. Retrieved July 30, 2024.
28. "Guskiewicz Appointed as Next President for University". MSU. December 8, 2023.